Book Reviews

Broccoli Pesto Pasta

A few amazing things happened this week. Some of them have to do with food, others not (you will need to hold tight on those.) One amazing thing can be called to attention now. Broccoli Pesto Sauce that doubles as a dip.

Thanks to my friend Catherine McCord and her wonderful book Weelicious I now have a new favorite. Let’s learn more about this…

Broccoli Pesto Recipe from Weelicious on MarlaMeridith.com

Meet Catherine…hi there! Not only is her cookbook awesome but she is such a great gal. I love her energy spunk and great taste. We have lots in common and we really like clean, healthy and delicious food…

Fresh Fruit | MarlaMeridith.com

Have you ever made a small life decision that impacts your world in a great way. I did just that this week.

One of the smartest moves I have made in a while: ย I have delegated a whole lot of school drop-offs and pick-ups to my hubs. That guarantees me more time in the kitchen to experiment with new recipes like this AMAZING Broccoli Pesto.

Broccoli Pesto Recipe from Weelicious on MarlaMeridith.com

Have you ever made pesto sauce with broccoli? It is one of the simplest things to prepare and it offers a great flavor boost to just about everything. Of course you can use it as a pasta sauce. I love mine stirred into quinoa. How about topping a baked potato with this? I also tossed chickpeas with it, a great way to go.

By the way I have a deliciousย Toasted Walnut Spinach Pesto you can check out too.

Broccoli Pesto Recipe from Weelicious on MarlaMeridith.com

Make your pesto as thin or thick as you like. I like ours on the thicker side. To thin it out simply add some more olive oil or water when blending. On the thinner side it would make a great salad dressing.

Really the sky is the limit.

Broccoli Pesto Recipe from Weelicious on MarlaMeridith.com

This is 1 out of 140 healthy and tasty recipes that Catherine has in her book.

She uses easy to find, whole foods in her recipes. They are kid-tested, parent approved & great for you. Catherine proves that we can teach or kids to make healthy choices by introducing them to making right decisions from the beginning.

There is nothing sneaky or tricky involved.

Broccoli Pesto Recipe from Weelicious on MarlaMeridith.com

Catherine and I (along with a lot of you) have the same mindset about providing nourishing fit-food to our families.

Kids should join in the shopping and cooking experience, they love watching processes and sequences of events.

Also having them help in the kitchen from time to time strategically sets them up to be little foodies. The less hectic weekends are a great time for this!

Broccoli Pesto Recipe from Weelicious on MarlaMeridith.com

This book is not only for people with little kids. It is great for anyone who is trying to live a life filled with simple, budget friendly, great tasting whole foods.

There is a section on baby purรฉes, but you can bypass that or enjoy them as a “big kid” if you don’t have littles in your house. The bulk of the book is great for anyone, any age at all!

Weelicious Cookbook Featured on MarlaMeridith.com

Broccoli Pesto Recipe from Weelicious on MarlaMeridith.com

Do you have a favorite pesto recipe? Do you go traditional with basil or do you have a special twist?

*This recipe is adapted from the Weelicous cookbook. Pesto is open to lots of creativity, have fun with it!

Click HERE for recipe details.

Pesto Recipe Links

~ Marla Meridith

Join the Conversation

91 thoughts on “Broccoli Pesto Pasta

    1. Hi Sarah, experiment with different nuts. Pecans and almonds would be amazing. Pistachios too. Hazelnuts could be an interesting twist. Unless of course there are nut allergies?

        1. Maybe replace the nuts with unsalted sunflower seeds? Or just add some extra cheese? Hmmmmm. Let me know what you come up with ๐Ÿ™‚

          1. I just substituted sunflower seeds for nuts in my kale pesto and it turned out great! The sunflower seeds just take a few extra minutes to grind in the food processor, but otherwise it’s an easy sub!

  1. My family’s favorite meal depends on which member you are talking to ๐Ÿ˜‰ One of my children loves anything pasta-related, so I can’t wait to try this pesto!

  2. This looks really delicious! I love the idea of putting it in quinoa; I’m definitely going to try this soon. ๐Ÿ™‚

  3. Can’t wait to see what you come up with, Marla, now that you will have more time!
    So happy to see this cookbook – Catherine has great recipes for the picky kids!

  4. Love everything about this post – the book, Catherine, a way to put broccoli in pasta – I mean what’s not to like there?! I rather went off traditional pesto in fear of Pine nut mouth but the use of walnuts is a great substitute – that and sourcing the pine nuts from Spain or anywhere outside China… odd I know!

  5. I have never homemade pesto sauce but this made me want to try it! I am just getting in to cooking. Before now my husband and I haven’t been so great at eating healthy… This cookbook would be a great way to get me on the right track!

  6. My favorite home cooked family meal is chili. I always make a big batch to freeze extra. We love to eat it with tortilla chips, over baked potatoes, on hot dogs, in omelettes, etc. One pot creates so many options for us =)

  7. Currently in love with creamy and evil stovetop mac and cheese. Absolutely no one complains, its quick and easy, you can dump in add-ins galore and only one pot to clean!

  8. Every Sunday, my mom would make pasta with homemade meatballs and it’s always been my favorite meal ๐Ÿ™‚

  9. My favorite home cooked family meal is my mom’s chicken, she uses BBQ chips crumbs as breading on it it’s so good!

  10. Spaghetti … we used gluten free noodle and made my own spaghetti sauce (so I can add and hide those green veggies ๐Ÿ™‚ Thanks for the giveaway!

  11. My favorite family meal is pasta and meatballs because I know my whole family will sit and eat without any complaints. My personal favorite is chicken noodle soup.

  12. Our favorite family meal right now is a quick crockpot pot roast with potatoes. It is perfect for winter and an easy meal for mom ๐Ÿ˜‰

  13. Pesto chicken (with homemade pesto), homemade noodles and a spinach salad with walnuts, apples or pears, gorgonzola in a raspberry vinaegrette (homemade raspberry vinegar!).

  14. I love to make homemade pizza – sometimes I can’t believe that I can make pizza! And its one of my kids’ favorite things to eat.

  15. My favorite home cooked meal includes seared Korean-style salmon, brown rice, and sauteed broccoli. I know it doesn’t sound like much, but it’s one of my favorite meals!